Everton Vs. Liverpool Preview: Team News And Predicted Starting Lineups

Everton host Liverpool tonight in a Merseyside derby like none before it. The game will be missing a key ingredient, making it debatable as to whether it can truly be considered a derby.

Since the first game between the two sides was played at Goodison Park in October 1894, there has never been an official attendance lower than 18,000.

Today it will be 0.

In some ways, the restart of the Premier League has a new season feel to it, or maybe even an early pre-season feel given the empty stadiums. The break has been longer than a usual mid-season break, and many players up and down the league who might have been out injured for the season are back in action.

For Liverpool, it’s the beginning of a triumphant end. They will win the title soon, it’s just a matter of when, and where. Luckily for Everton supporters, it will not be at Goodison Park.

This game is arguably more important to Everton’s season and what is still in the balance, than it is to Liverpool’s and what is inevitable.

Everton have nine games in which to make a push for the European places. Given they are currently nine points off fifth, qualification for next year’s Europa League seems unlikely but with 27 points available during the run-in, there is still a chance.

This meeting with Liverpool sees them start with the toughest ask of all—defeating the league leaders—but Toffees boss Carlo Ancelotti sees it as a great opportunity, not least to defeat Liverpool for the first time since October 2010.

“I think we have to play a perfect game, showing character, sacrifice, and personality,” Ancelotti said in his pre-match press conference.

“It will be difficult, but we have to consider it as a great opportunity to show our quality and come back to the Premier League with a good performance. To try to win and to do our best.

“Our goal is to try to reach a good position in the table and, if it’s possible, to fight to play in Europe next season.”

Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp is expecting a tough battle. Although his side have been flying all season, opening up a 22-point lead at the top of the table, they lost four of their six games before the season paused, including exiting the Champions League and the FA Cup at the hands of Atlético Madrid and Chelsea respectively.

One aspect of the derby that will remain is an added desire to win driven by local players such as Tom Davies, Anthony Gordon, and Leighton Baines for Everton; and Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold and Curtis Jones.

It’s for this reason that it might not be an ideal game for the Reds to regain the form they had lost before the break.

“I expect, like I always do, Everton to be in very good shape, so it will be difficult for us, and rightly so, it’s Premier League,” said Klopp. 

“We didn’t play for a while so we should try to sort the problems in this game, we should give them some as well, and then we will see.

“Everton will be highly motivated. Starting with a derby in a normal season would already be really interesting, and now it’s our short season and it’s very interesting. 

“It’s a special game for different reasons. We try to do our best and we’ll see what we get for it.”

Both managers mentioned the unprecedented conditions in which this derby will be played.

“It’s all different but we cannot change that, so we have to use the circumstances, not suffer from that,” said Klopp.

“That means there’s a game between Everton and Liverpool, which is still a derby and important for both teams for different reasons. That’s what we are looking forward to.”

Ancelotti commented on how players will react without the home support—an aspect of the game on which he has placed great importance since arriving at Everton—and if they will lose any home advantage as a result.

“I am pleased the game is at Goodison Park, but no one is pleased to play games without supporters,” he said.

“Nobody knows how the players will react without supporters. It is a mental aspect, we will see. It could be really important for our team and for others.

“We know how our fans supported us during games but we have to respect the rules. It is the right procedure and everyone has to stay safe, then, I hope soon, we can have supporters in the stadiums.”

Team News

Ancelotti suggested he will stick with the 4-4-2 formation used before the break, but will be without Yerry Mina, Fabian Delph, Theo Walcott and Jean-Philippe Gbamin.

Other than Xherdan Shaqiri, who is still recovering from a calf injury, Liverpool have a full squad from which to choose.

Everton Vs. Liverpool Predicted Starting XI

Everton: Pickford; Coleman, Keane, Holgate, Digne; Sidibe, Gomes, Davies, Sigurdsson; Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin.

Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Fabinho, Henderson, Keita; Salah, Firmino, Mane.